“Sell in May and go away; come again on St. Ledger’s Day.” This seasonal adage is based on the premise that stocks historically do worse in the summer, so investors should sell out in May and return in the fall. Though a catchy rhyme, this commits a number of investing fallacies—most notably, trying to time the market based on past performance, a feat no professional investor I’m aware of can do successfully and reliably.

But debunking this fallacy also has value for those on the job hunt: namely, no “perfect” time exists to start your job hunt or submit an application. About a year and a half ago, I saw an internal posting for a position I was interested in at my company, Fisher Investments. In my opinion, I wasn’t quite ready for the role—I felt I needed more experience. However, after discussing with a mentor, I was advised to apply: the pros outweighed the cons. The worst case scenario is not getting the position. But even if you apply and don’t get it, you’ve signaled to management your interest, which could pay dividends in the future. Why take yourself out of the game? Opportunities come and go—don’t miss out on them because you’re waiting for the ideal (and arbitrary) moment.

“Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.” Some attribute this quote to William Shakespeare, but whoever said it knew this truth: deadlines matter. Whether it’s responding to a job posting, submitting paperwork, or replying to a recruiter, timeliness is vital. Think of it from the company’s point of view: they’re trying to fill an empty position. This position theoretically adds value for the business—its vacancy means no value-add plus the cost of company resources to fill the role. It’s in their interest to hire someone in a timely manner, and if you don’t respond by their deadline, they may move on to other candidates who did.

And more relevant to the individual job applicant, meeting deadlines is among the first impressions you’ll make on a company. Making a deadline doesn’t help you—that’s a general expectation—but missing one definitely hurts you. What does it tell the hiring manager if you turn in paperwork a day or two late after requested? Is it a harbinger of future behavior? Job applicants deal with enough challenges—be on time (or early!) and don’t give them a reason to doubt their decision to talk to you.

After hours of writing, formatting and scrutinizing your resume and/or cover letter, the unthinkable happens: your computer crashes! Once you pick your jaw up off the floor and the horrible knot in your stomach begins to unwind, you frantically check to see if your work is (at least partially) intact, all the while wondering why you didn’t save it in the first place. It’s a lesson we’ve all unfortunately experienced at some point.

The good news is that technology has been evolving to help negate this huge inconvenience. Gone are the days of an accidental ink spillage ruining your one parchment. From cheap and accessible hardware like flash drives to free “cloud” computing storage services, you have multiple places to store your work in perpetuity. Some word processors even automatically save your work after certain time intervals. That said, not much can beat a regular regimen of “Ctrl + s”—or whatever your hotkey for save is—to avert a potential disaster, even if it’s just for your own peace of mind.